US20210109615A1 - Resistive pressure sensor device system - Google Patents
Resistive pressure sensor device system Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- US20210109615A1 US20210109615A1 US16/984,459 US202016984459A US2021109615A1 US 20210109615 A1 US20210109615 A1 US 20210109615A1 US 202016984459 A US202016984459 A US 202016984459A US 2021109615 A1 US2021109615 A1 US 2021109615A1
- Authority
- US
- United States
- Prior art keywords
- pressure
- panel
- conductive
- support
- facing surface
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Abandoned
Links
- 239000000758 substrate Substances 0.000 claims description 85
- 125000006850 spacer group Chemical group 0.000 claims description 17
- 239000011253 protective coating Substances 0.000 claims description 14
- 238000003860 storage Methods 0.000 claims description 8
- 238000011022 operating instruction Methods 0.000 claims description 5
- 238000005259 measurement Methods 0.000 abstract description 5
- 239000004020 conductor Substances 0.000 description 22
- 229910052751 metal Inorganic materials 0.000 description 18
- 239000002184 metal Substances 0.000 description 18
- 239000011521 glass Substances 0.000 description 15
- 229920001940 conductive polymer Polymers 0.000 description 13
- OKTJSMMVPCPJKN-UHFFFAOYSA-N Carbon Chemical compound [C] OKTJSMMVPCPJKN-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 12
- 229920000144 PEDOT:PSS Polymers 0.000 description 12
- 239000000203 mixture Substances 0.000 description 12
- 238000000576 coating method Methods 0.000 description 9
- 238000000034 method Methods 0.000 description 9
- 230000003287 optical effect Effects 0.000 description 9
- BQCADISMDOOEFD-UHFFFAOYSA-N Silver Chemical compound [Ag] BQCADISMDOOEFD-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 8
- 239000011248 coating agent Substances 0.000 description 8
- 239000012212 insulator Substances 0.000 description 8
- 239000002105 nanoparticle Substances 0.000 description 8
- 238000005507 spraying Methods 0.000 description 8
- 230000009471 action Effects 0.000 description 7
- AMGQUBHHOARCQH-UHFFFAOYSA-N indium;oxotin Chemical compound [In].[Sn]=O AMGQUBHHOARCQH-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 7
- 239000005020 polyethylene terephthalate Substances 0.000 description 7
- 229920000139 polyethylene terephthalate Polymers 0.000 description 7
- 230000008569 process Effects 0.000 description 7
- 239000002042 Silver nanowire Substances 0.000 description 6
- NIXOWILDQLNWCW-UHFFFAOYSA-N acrylic acid group Chemical group C(C=C)(=O)O NIXOWILDQLNWCW-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 6
- 239000011852 carbon nanoparticle Substances 0.000 description 6
- 239000002041 carbon nanotube Substances 0.000 description 6
- 229910021393 carbon nanotube Inorganic materials 0.000 description 6
- 229910021389 graphene Inorganic materials 0.000 description 6
- 238000000608 laser ablation Methods 0.000 description 6
- 239000000463 material Substances 0.000 description 6
- 239000002082 metal nanoparticle Substances 0.000 description 6
- 239000002070 nanowire Substances 0.000 description 6
- 239000011347 resin Substances 0.000 description 6
- 229920005989 resin Polymers 0.000 description 6
- YVTHLONGBIQYBO-UHFFFAOYSA-N zinc indium(3+) oxygen(2-) Chemical compound [O--].[Zn++].[In+3] YVTHLONGBIQYBO-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 6
- TYHJXGDMRRJCRY-UHFFFAOYSA-N zinc indium(3+) oxygen(2-) tin(4+) Chemical compound [O-2].[Zn+2].[Sn+4].[In+3] TYHJXGDMRRJCRY-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 6
- VYPSYNLAJGMNEJ-UHFFFAOYSA-N Silicium dioxide Chemical compound O=[Si]=O VYPSYNLAJGMNEJ-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 5
- 239000000853 adhesive Substances 0.000 description 5
- 230000001070 adhesive effect Effects 0.000 description 5
- 238000007641 inkjet printing Methods 0.000 description 5
- 239000000178 monomer Substances 0.000 description 5
- 229920000642 polymer Polymers 0.000 description 5
- 238000007650 screen-printing Methods 0.000 description 5
- 238000007764 slot die coating Methods 0.000 description 5
- 239000012705 liquid precursor Substances 0.000 description 4
- 238000000206 photolithography Methods 0.000 description 4
- -1 polyethylene terephthalate Polymers 0.000 description 4
- 239000002952 polymeric resin Substances 0.000 description 4
- 238000003825 pressing Methods 0.000 description 4
- LYCAIKOWRPUZTN-UHFFFAOYSA-N Ethylene glycol Chemical compound OCCO LYCAIKOWRPUZTN-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 3
- 230000008901 benefit Effects 0.000 description 3
- 229920006037 cross link polymer Polymers 0.000 description 3
- 238000005516 engineering process Methods 0.000 description 3
- 230000006870 function Effects 0.000 description 3
- 238000007756 gravure coating Methods 0.000 description 3
- 229920002120 photoresistant polymer Polymers 0.000 description 3
- 239000002985 plastic film Substances 0.000 description 3
- 229920003207 poly(ethylene-2,6-naphthalate) Polymers 0.000 description 3
- 239000011112 polyethylene naphthalate Substances 0.000 description 3
- 238000007639 printing Methods 0.000 description 3
- 238000012545 processing Methods 0.000 description 3
- 230000009467 reduction Effects 0.000 description 3
- 230000000284 resting effect Effects 0.000 description 3
- 238000012360 testing method Methods 0.000 description 3
- 239000012780 transparent material Substances 0.000 description 3
- 230000007423 decrease Effects 0.000 description 2
- 230000001419 dependent effect Effects 0.000 description 2
- 238000010586 diagram Methods 0.000 description 2
- 239000007788 liquid Substances 0.000 description 2
- 238000011068 loading method Methods 0.000 description 2
- 238000004519 manufacturing process Methods 0.000 description 2
- 239000011159 matrix material Substances 0.000 description 2
- 238000012986 modification Methods 0.000 description 2
- 230000004048 modification Effects 0.000 description 2
- 229920006255 plastic film Polymers 0.000 description 2
- 229920003229 poly(methyl methacrylate) Polymers 0.000 description 2
- 229920000636 poly(norbornene) polymer Polymers 0.000 description 2
- 239000004417 polycarbonate Substances 0.000 description 2
- 229920000515 polycarbonate Polymers 0.000 description 2
- 239000004926 polymethyl methacrylate Substances 0.000 description 2
- 229920001296 polysiloxane Polymers 0.000 description 2
- 230000001681 protective effect Effects 0.000 description 2
- 239000000377 silicon dioxide Substances 0.000 description 2
- 235000012239 silicon dioxide Nutrition 0.000 description 2
- 229910052709 silver Inorganic materials 0.000 description 2
- 239000004332 silver Substances 0.000 description 2
- 229910000679 solder Inorganic materials 0.000 description 2
- 238000002834 transmittance Methods 0.000 description 2
- 230000000007 visual effect Effects 0.000 description 2
- 229920012266 Poly(ether sulfone) PES Polymers 0.000 description 1
- 239000004793 Polystyrene Substances 0.000 description 1
- 229910052581 Si3N4 Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- 101150049278 US20 gene Proteins 0.000 description 1
- 230000004913 activation Effects 0.000 description 1
- 239000002313 adhesive film Substances 0.000 description 1
- 230000003466 anti-cipated effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000013459 approach Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000015572 biosynthetic process Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000004891 communication Methods 0.000 description 1
- 239000002131 composite material Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000011370 conductive nanoparticle Substances 0.000 description 1
- 238000012937 correction Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000003247 decreasing effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000000151 deposition Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000008021 deposition Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000013461 design Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000001514 detection method Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000009826 distribution Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000001914 filtration Methods 0.000 description 1
- 229920002457 flexible plastic Polymers 0.000 description 1
- 125000000524 functional group Chemical group 0.000 description 1
- 239000008246 gaseous mixture Substances 0.000 description 1
- 238000010438 heat treatment Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000002209 hydrophobic effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 230000010354 integration Effects 0.000 description 1
- 230000007246 mechanism Effects 0.000 description 1
- 239000002480 mineral oil Substances 0.000 description 1
- 235000010446 mineral oil Nutrition 0.000 description 1
- 238000010295 mobile communication Methods 0.000 description 1
- 239000002114 nanocomposite Substances 0.000 description 1
- TWNQGVIAIRXVLR-UHFFFAOYSA-N oxo(oxoalumanyloxy)alumane Chemical compound O=[Al]O[Al]=O TWNQGVIAIRXVLR-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- 238000004091 panning Methods 0.000 description 1
- 229920003023 plastic Polymers 0.000 description 1
- 239000004033 plastic Substances 0.000 description 1
- 229920002635 polyurethane Polymers 0.000 description 1
- 239000004814 polyurethane Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000002243 precursor Substances 0.000 description 1
- 230000004044 response Effects 0.000 description 1
- 230000035945 sensitivity Effects 0.000 description 1
- HQVNEWCFYHHQES-UHFFFAOYSA-N silicon nitride Chemical compound N12[Si]34N5[Si]62N3[Si]51N64 HQVNEWCFYHHQES-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- 229910052814 silicon oxide Inorganic materials 0.000 description 1
- 229920002545 silicone oil Polymers 0.000 description 1
- 239000007787 solid Substances 0.000 description 1
- 238000001228 spectrum Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000004544 sputter deposition Methods 0.000 description 1
- 229920003002 synthetic resin Polymers 0.000 description 1
- 238000007669 thermal treatment Methods 0.000 description 1
- 239000010409 thin film Substances 0.000 description 1
- 238000000411 transmission spectrum Methods 0.000 description 1
Images
Classifications
-
- G—PHYSICS
- G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
- G06F—ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING
- G06F3/00—Input arrangements for transferring data to be processed into a form capable of being handled by the computer; Output arrangements for transferring data from processing unit to output unit, e.g. interface arrangements
- G06F3/01—Input arrangements or combined input and output arrangements for interaction between user and computer
- G06F3/03—Arrangements for converting the position or the displacement of a member into a coded form
- G06F3/041—Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
- G06F3/045—Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means using resistive elements, e.g. a single continuous surface or two parallel surfaces put in contact
-
- G—PHYSICS
- G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
- G06F—ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING
- G06F3/00—Input arrangements for transferring data to be processed into a form capable of being handled by the computer; Output arrangements for transferring data from processing unit to output unit, e.g. interface arrangements
- G06F3/01—Input arrangements or combined input and output arrangements for interaction between user and computer
- G06F3/03—Arrangements for converting the position or the displacement of a member into a coded form
- G06F3/041—Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
- G06F3/0414—Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means using force sensing means to determine a position
-
- G—PHYSICS
- G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
- G06F—ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING
- G06F3/00—Input arrangements for transferring data to be processed into a form capable of being handled by the computer; Output arrangements for transferring data from processing unit to output unit, e.g. interface arrangements
- G06F3/01—Input arrangements or combined input and output arrangements for interaction between user and computer
- G06F3/03—Arrangements for converting the position or the displacement of a member into a coded form
- G06F3/041—Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
- G06F3/0416—Control or interface arrangements specially adapted for digitisers
- G06F3/04166—Details of scanning methods, e.g. sampling time, grouping of sub areas or time sharing with display driving
-
- G—PHYSICS
- G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
- G06F—ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING
- G06F2203/00—Indexing scheme relating to G06F3/00 - G06F3/048
- G06F2203/041—Indexing scheme relating to G06F3/041 - G06F3/045
- G06F2203/04102—Flexible digitiser, i.e. constructional details for allowing the whole digitising part of a device to be flexed or rolled like a sheet of paper
-
- G—PHYSICS
- G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
- G06F—ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING
- G06F2203/00—Indexing scheme relating to G06F3/00 - G06F3/048
- G06F2203/041—Indexing scheme relating to G06F3/041 - G06F3/045
- G06F2203/04104—Multi-touch detection in digitiser, i.e. details about the simultaneous detection of a plurality of touching locations, e.g. multiple fingers or pen and finger
-
- G—PHYSICS
- G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
- G06F—ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING
- G06F2203/00—Indexing scheme relating to G06F3/00 - G06F3/048
- G06F2203/041—Indexing scheme relating to G06F3/041 - G06F3/045
- G06F2203/04107—Shielding in digitiser, i.e. guard or shielding arrangements, mostly for capacitive touchscreens, e.g. driven shields, driven grounds
Definitions
- the present invention is in the field of pressure sensors.
- a touch panel is a type of input device that allows a user to input information through physical contact with a panel device.
- the touch panel is generally used as the input device for various kinds of products such as appliances, televisions, notebook computers and monitors as well as portable electronic devices such as electronic notebooks, electronic books (e-books), PMPs (Portable Multimedia Players), GPS navigation units, UMPCs (Ultra Mobile PCs), mobile phones, smart phones, Smart watches, tablet PCs (tablet Personal Computers), watch phones, and mobile communication terminals.
- portable electronic devices such as electronic notebooks, electronic books (e-books), PMPs (Portable Multimedia Players), GPS navigation units, UMPCs (Ultra Mobile PCs), mobile phones, smart phones, Smart watches, tablet PCs (tablet Personal Computers), watch phones, and mobile communication terminals.
- Recent user interface environments have applications that may require accurate information on the amount of pressure applied to a touch screen panel, and the present invention is intended to address this need.
- touch panel technologies lack the ability to track multiple points of contact simultaneously.
- the most commonly used technology for a multitouch system is projected capacitive method.
- the projected capacitive method has some significant limitations. For example, it is unable to detect touch input from non-conductive objects such as a plastic stylus and can only detect touch location in two dimensions (i.e. touch points in an x-y plane).
- An alternative means of providing three-dimensional touch location is by adding an additional substrate having a resistive layer above a conventional capacitive sensor.
- This system however requires additional controller circuitry (and hence cost) that can stimulate and measure the response of the two sensor layers at multiple frequencies. The increased complexity of the circuit design and also reduces the accuracy of the sensor device.
- the present pressure sensor invention addresses these problems by being capable of being incorporated into and used with conventional touch panel electronic systems to more precisely measure the force while also being capable of configuration to simultaneously identify multiple touch locations.
- the touch panel pressure sensor is optically transparent such that it can be applied to visual touch screen devices.
- an improved resistive pressure sensor device capable of detecting very small discrete pressure changes through measuring a discrete resistance involving two electrode layers, at least one of which is patterned to comprise a plurality of conductive paths that are made up of discrete conductive lines separated by insulating gaps. Discrete changes in resistance may be detected from discrete changes occurring in the contact area between the two electrode layers due to the use of discrete conductive lines in the electrode layers.
- the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention is also capable of being configured for use in an electronic system with conventional multi-touch detection hardware and software to detect and process multiple touches and applied pressures that occur at substantially the same time at distinct locations on the touch surface of the pressure sensor.
- the resistive pressure sensor device is optically transparent with optically transparent substrates and electrode layers so as to be combined with a visual display device.
- the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention can be incorporated into other systems or devices where transparency is not required.
- the optically transparent electrode layers comprise a conductive polymer composite formed with conductive nanoparticles that help ensure flexibility, stability and optical transparency.
- the pressure sensor of the present invention is optically transparent and is thus well suited to being applied to a touch display panel.
- the optically transparent pressure sensor comprises an optically transparent pressure panel that is joined to an optically transparent support panel.
- the pressure panel comprises an optically transparent pressure substrate that is coated on a pressure receiving surface with an optically transparent protective coating and has an opposing support panel facing surface that has an optically transparent pressure panel electrode layer.
- the pressure substrate, protective coating, and pressure panel electrode layer are all substantially transparent to light in the optical wavelengths.
- the support panel which is adjacent to and substantially parallel to the pressure panel, comprises an optically transparent support substrate that has a pressure panel facing surface having an optically transparent support panel electrode layer, optically transparent spacers acrylic based polymer, silicone), and an optically transparent attachment member.
- the support substrate, support panel electrode layer, spacers, and attachment member are all substantially transparent to light in the optical wavelengths.
- the attachment member is along the outer edge of the support panel and is used to join together the pressure and support panels to form an optically transparent insulating space located between the support panel facing surface of the pressure substrate and the pressure panel facing surface of the support substrate.
- the insulating space may contain an optically transparent insulator.
- the pressure substrate and support substrate may be comprised of a material such as PET (polyethylene terephthalate) or glass which is substantially transparent to light in the optical wavelengths.
- PET polyethylene terephthalate
- the pressure panel electrode layer and support panel electrode layer achieve substantial transparency in the optical wavelengths by being applied in very thin coatings of less than 200 nm and/or being an inherently transparent material (e.g. ITO (indium tin oxide)).
- the optically transparent pressure sensor comprises generally an optically transparent pressure panel and an optically transparent support panel as described for the first embodiment.
- the pressure panel further comprises an optically transparent electrode substrate that is located on the support panel facing surface of the pressure substrate and in which the pressure panel electrode layer is partially embedded.
- the electrode substrate is comprised of an optically transparent material such as an acrylic based polymer.
- optically transparent as applied to any object means that light may pass through the object to be perceived by a human eye.
- light in the visible portion of the spectrum may pass through the optically transparent pressure sensor of the present invention to be perceived by a human eye.
- the resistive pressure sensing device is part of a multi-touch x-y-z positional pressure sensor system that comprises the resistive pressure sensing device of either the first or second embodiments and an electronic sensor controller with a connection to a host system.
- the electronic controller detects a location on a two-dimensional plane (e.g. an x-y plane of a touch panel surface) where a force is being applied and simultaneously measure the amount of force being applied at the location which can be calculated in some embodiments to be representative of a “depth” in a third dimension (e.g. a z-axis of a touch panel).
- FIG. 1 shows a cross sectional view of a first exemplary embodiment of the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention in an uncompressed state.
- FIG. 2 shows a cross sectional view of a first exemplary embodiment of the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention in a compressed state.
- FIG. 3 shows a front perspective view of the top surface of the optically transparent pressure substrate for a first exemplary embodiment of the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention.
- FIG. 4 shows a rear perspective view of the support panel facing surface of the optically transparent pressure substrate of FIG. 3 .
- FIG. 5 shows a front perspective view of the pressure panel facing surface of the optically transparent support substrate for a first exemplary embodiment of the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention.
- FIG. 6 shows a front perspective view of a conductive support layer path from the optically transparent support panel electrode layer on the pressure panel facing surface of the support substrate.
- FIG. 7 shows a front side view of a conductive support layer path from the optically transparent support panel electrode layer on the pressure panel facing surface of the support substrate.
- FIG. 8 shows a front perspective view of an optically transparent spacer from the pressure panel facing surface of the support substrate.
- FIG. 9 shows a front perspective view of an optically transparent attachment member of the support panel in relation to its position along the outer edge of the pressure panel facing surface of the support substrate.
- FIG. 10 shows a front perspective view of the attachment member in position along the outer edge of the pressure panel facing surface of the support substrate.
- FIG. 11 shows a front perspective view of the optically transparent pressure panel above the optically transparent support panel with the optically transparent insulating space occupied by an optically transparent insulator prior to the pressure panel being joined to the upper edge of the attachment member.
- FIG. 12 shows a front perspective view of the assembled resistive pressure sensor device once the pressure panel and support panel are joined together and a power source is connected.
- FIG. 13 is a front perspective view of the conductive support layer paths that make up the optically transparent support panel electrode layer.
- FIG. 14 is a top side view of a first exemplary line pattern for a conductive support layer path of the support panel electrode layer.
- FIG. 15 is a top side view of a second exemplary line pattern for a conductive support layer path of the support panel electrode layer.
- FIG. 16 is a top side view of a third exemplary line pattern for a conductive support layer path of the support panel electrode layer.
- FIG. 17 is a top side view of a fourth exemplary line pattern for a conductive support layer path of the support panel electrode layer.
- FIG. 18 is a top side view showing the optically transparent pressure panel electrode layer overlaid on the optically transparent support substrate and showing the optically transparent support panel electrode layer and optically transparent spacers.
- FIG. 19 is a flowchart of the steps for the process of making a first embodiment of the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention.
- FIG. 20 is a flowchart of the steps for the process of making a second embodiment of the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention.
- FIG. 21 is a schematic of the different layered components of a first embodiment of the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention.
- FIG. 22 is a schematic of the different layered components of a second embodiment of the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention.
- FIG. 23 is a schematic of the pressure panel electrode layer composition for a first embodiment of the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention.
- FIG. 25 shows a cross sectional view of a second exemplary embodiment of the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention in an uncompressed state.
- FIG. 26 shows a cross sectional view of a second exemplary embodiment of the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention in a compressed state.
- FIG. 27 shows for a reduction to practice of the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention test data of the measured transmittance as a function of light wavelength from 300-800 nm for the device and that of a glass slide.
- FIG. 28 shows for a reduction to practice of the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention test data of the pressure versus resistance curve of a representative pixel on the device.
- FIG. 29 shows for a reduction to practice of the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention test data of the pressing force versus resistance curve of a representative pixel on the device.
- FIG. 30 shows a top side view of the X-axis conductive pressure layer paths and Y-axis conductive support layer paths of the resistive pressure sensor device invention as configured for an x-y-z axis implementation.
- FIG. 31 shows an electronic schematic of the resistive pressure sensor device invention as configured for an x-y-z axis implementation.
- FIG. 32 shows a block diagram of an electronic system with the resistive pressure sensor device invention configured for an x-y-z axis implementation.
- FIG. 33 shows a block diagram of an electronic system with the resistive pressure sensor device invention configured for an x-y-z axis implementation.
- FIGS. 1-2 show a cross-sectional view of resistive pressure sensor device 10 according to a first preferred embodiment in an uncompressed state ( FIG. 1 ) and a compressed state ( FIG. 2 ) with a pressure force applied to its pressure receiving surface.
- the resistive pressure sensor device 10 is comprised generally of an optically transparent pressure panel 100 that is joined to an optically transparent support panel 200 .
- the optically transparent pressure panel 100 comprises an optically transparent pressure substrate 120 having a pressure receiving surface 122 and an opposing support panel facing surface 126 .
- Pressure substrate 120 may, by way of example and not limitation be comprised of glass, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), poly(ethylene 2,6-naphthalate) (PEN), polycarbonate (PC), poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA), polystyrene (PS), polyethersulfone (PES), or polynorbornene (PNB).
- PET polyethylene terephthalate
- PEN poly(ethylene 2,6-naphthalate)
- PC polycarbonate
- PMMA poly(methyl methacrylate)
- PS polystyrene
- PS polyethersulfone
- PPB polynorbornene
- the material of pressure substrate 120 is formulated so as to have sufficient elasticity to permit it to bend from a resting position under the force levels anticipated to be applied during use to pressure receiving surface 122 (e.g.
- pressure receiving surface 122 may be coated with an optically transparent coating to form a protective coating 124 .
- the optically transparent protective coating 124 applied may comprises a transparent crosslinked polymer resin.
- the resin can be polymerized from a mixture of mono and multifunctional acrylic monomers and oligomers.
- Protective coating 124 may be formed of a nanocomposite comprising a high loading of inorganic nanoparticles and a cured polymer resin matrix, a multilayer coating comprising alternating layers of nanometer thick inorganic deposit (such as silicon oxide, silicon nitride, aluminum oxide) and polymer, or thin glass with high hardness.
- the application of the protective coating 124 can be slot die coating, gravure coating, Meyer rod coating, and spray coating followed by curing under heating or exposure to UV light.
- the multilayer stack coating and hard glass may be laminated onto pressure receiving surface 122 during the original manufacture of pressure substrate 124 . Any material used for protective coating 124 should have an elasticity at least matching that of pressure substrate 120 so that protective coating 124 may bend (i.e. flex) with pressure substrate 120 when a pressure is applied and released.
- the optically transparent pressure panel electrode layer 130 is applied to support panel facing surface 126 of pressure substrate 120 .
- Pressure panel electrode layer 130 comprises a conductive material that when deposited on support panel facing surface 126 will have an elasticity at least matching that pressure substrate 120 so that it may bend with pressure substrate 120 when a pressure is applied.
- pressure panel electrode layer 130 may comprise conductive materials such as indium-tin-oxide (ITO), indium-zinc-oxide (IZO), indium-tin-zinc-oxide (ITZO), poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS), carbon nanoparticles, carbon nanotubes, graphene, metal nanoparticles, metal nanowires (e.g. silver nanowire (AgNW)), metal nanogrid, metal mesh, conductive polymer nanoparticles, conductive polymer nanoporous network or the mixture thereof.
- Pressure panel electrode layer 130 can achieve high conductivity as a very thin film.
- the thickness of the pressure panel electrode layer 30 should be below 200 nm. In this way the transparency of pressure panel electrode layer 130 can be very high.
- the application of the pressure panel electrode layer 130 to support panel facing surface 126 may involve slot die coating, spray coating, or Meyer rod coating a very thin layer of the conductive material.
- optically transparent pressure panel electrode layer 130 comprises a plurality of substantially parallel and straight conductive pressure layer paths 132 separated by insulating gaps 133 .
- the pattern of conductive pressure layer paths 132 and insulating gaps 133 are formed on pressure panel electrode layer 130 by laser ablation.
- a conductive connector 138 e.g. silver paste or solder
- an electrical path 140 e.g. a conductive wire or trace
- first polarity terminal 410 of voltage source 400 e.g. a direct current source with a voltage of less than ten volts.
- optically transparent support panel electrode layer 230 is attached to pressure panel facing surface 224 of support substrate 220 .
- Support substrate 220 may be comprised of, by way of example and not limitation, clear glass which should have an elasticity that is less than that of pressure panel 100 so that support panel 200 does not bend when a pressure force is applied to pressure panel 100 : This facilitates the contact area between pressure panel electrode layer 130 and support panel electrode layer 230 varying as a function of the amount of pressure applied.
- support substrate 220 may be comprised of glass which generally has a Young's modulus of around 7 GPa.
- the pressure substrate 120 may by way of example be a flexible plastic film such as PET, PEN, or PC.
- the Young's modulus of plastic films is smaller than glass (e.g. PET: 2-2.7 GPa),
- the pressure substrate 120 can also comprised of glass if it is thinner than the glass of the support substrate 220 . In such an exemplary case the pressure substrate 120 and the support substrate 220 would share the same Young's modulus for glass, but the thickness of the pressure substrate 120 (e.g.
- 0.1-0.33 mm would be much smaller than that of the support substrate 220 (1-2 mm) such that the amount of force required to bend the pressure substrate 120 would be far less than that for the support substrate 220 .
- Both plastic films and glass with different thicknesses are readily available commercially.
- Optically transparent support panel electrode layer 230 may comprise conductive materials such as indium-tin-oxide (ITO), indium-zinc-oxide (IZO), indium-tin-zinc-oxide (ITZO), poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS), carbon nanoparticles, carbon nanotubes, graphene, metal nanoparticles, metal nanowires (e.g. silver nanowire (AgNW)), metal nanogrid, metal mesh, conductive polymer nanoparticles, conductive polymer nanoporous network or the mixture thereof.
- ITO indium-tin-oxide
- IZO indium-zinc-oxide
- ITZO indium-tin-zinc-oxide
- PEDOT:PSS poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate
- carbon nanoparticles carbon nanotubes, graphene, metal nanop
- optically transparent support panel electrode layer 230 comprises a plurality of adjacent conductive support layer paths 232 separated by insulating gaps 233 .
- conductive support layer paths 232 are oriented substantially perpendicular to the conductive pressure layer paths 132 .
- the orientation of conductive pressure layer paths 132 and conductive support layer paths 232 are not limited in the present invention to being substantially perpendicular but may be varied depending upon the particular application.
- a conductive connector 238 e.g. silver paste or solder
- an electrical path 240 e.g. a conductive wire or trace
- each optically transparent conductive support layer path 232 of support panel electrode layer 230 comprises one or more conductive lines 234 , with each conductive line having a height 234 h and width 234 w .
- the conductive lines 234 are electrically joined together at a path connector end 235 .
- Each line 234 is separated from any adjacent line 234 with an insulating gap 236 , with each insulating gap having a width of 236 w :
- the conductive lines 234 of a conductive support layer path 232 may be patterned, such as by way of example and not limitation, with each line 234 having the same width 234 w ( FIG.
- conductive pressure layer paths 132 of pressure panel electrode layer 130 which would be comprised of conductive lines and insulating gaps electrically joined together at a path connector end, while the conductive support layer paths 232 of support panel electrode layer 230 would not have such conductive lines. Accordingly, there are embodiments where it is either the pressure panel electrode layer 130 or the support panel electrode layer 230 , but not both, which has at least one conductive layer path with discrete conductive lines and insulating gaps electrically joined together at a path connector end. In other embodiments the pressure panel electrode layer 130 and the support panel electrode layer 230 both have at least one conductive layer path with discrete conductive lines and insulating gaps electrically joined together at a path connector end.
- the pattern of conductive lines 234 of a conductive support layer path 232 for support panel electrode layer 230 will affect the surface contact area that occurs between pressure panel electrode layer 130 and support panel electrode layer 230 when a pressure is applied to the pressure receiving surface of touch substrate 120 .
- the electrical resistance between two electrodes decreases as the area of contact between the electrode surfaces increases.
- each spacer 250 may be in the shape of a pillar with a diameter 250 w that is 30-100 ⁇ m (the threshold dimension for resolution by an unaided human eye) and a height 250 h ranging from 50-100 ⁇ m.
- the spacers 250 may be formed of optically clear adhesive (OCA), optically clear resin, or clear photoresist. Spacers 250 keep the pressure panel electrode layer 130 and support panel electrode layer 230 from being in electrical contact when no pressure is applied to pressure substrate 120 .
- the distance between two adjacent spacers 250 may be equal to or smaller than the distance between two adjacent pixels. The distance between two adjacent spacers 250 may also vary depending on the elasticity of pressure panel 100 .
- attachment member 300 may be comprised of monomers that are first screen printed on support substrate 220 , and which will be cured one pressure panel 100 is placed attachment member 300 .
- attachment member 300 may be pre-made into an adhesive film which is cut and laminated between pressure panel 100 and support panel 200 .
- an optically transparent insulating space 340 that is located between the pressure substrate 120 support panel facing surface 126 , the support substrate 220 pressure panel facing surface 226 and the attachment member 300 .
- the attachment member 300 forms a continuous solid perimeter wall that traverses the entire length of outer edges 128 and 228 such that the insulating space 340 is closed.
- there may be one or more openings in the attachment member 300 such that the insulating space 340 is not entirely closed. It is contemplated that insulating space 340 would be occupied by an optically transparent insulator 350 which has electrical insulating properties such that when no force is applied to pressure sensor panel 100 (i.e.
- Insulator 350 may, by way of example and not limitation, be an insulating gas or gaseous mixture such as air, or may be a non-volatile liquid such as ethylene glycol, silicone oil, or mineral oil.
- FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate an exemplary pressure sensing event using resistive pressure sensor 10 .
- the pressure panel electrode layer 130 and support panel electrode layer 230 are not in contact and so there is an open circuit with no measurable current flow (i.e. extremely large resistance).
- the pressure substrate 120 will bend (i.e. flex) towards the support substrate 220 .
- this will cause a conductive pressure layer path 132 to make contact with a conductive line 234 of a conductive support layer path 232 closing the circuit and causing a measurable current to flow between the pressure and support panel electrode layers.
- pressure is reduced or removed pressure substrate 120 will return to its unbent (i.e. unflexed) position restoring the insulating space between pressure electrode 130 and support electrode 230 .
- a difference in the degree of pressure affects a difference in the area of surface contact between the pressure and support panel electrode layers: Any increase in pressure above the minimum level of applied pressure will cause an increase in the contact area between the conductive pressure layer paths 232 and discrete conductive lines 234 of conductive support layer paths 232 which will incrementally decrease the resistance of the circuit and increase the current flow.
- FIG. 28 data from measurements of a prototype of the present invention with pressure applied to the pressure receiving surface up to 10 kPa is shown. Without any applied pressure, a closed circuit is not formed between the pressure and support panel electrode layers. At an applied force of approximately 2 kPa a closed circuit between the electrode layers was created that had a measured resistance of around 700 k ⁇ . As shown with increased applied force the measured resistance of the closed circuit between the electrode layers decreased with a measured resistance of around 4 k ⁇ when the applied force was increased to approximately 10 kPa.
- FIG. 19 the steps of the process 600 of fabricating a first preferred embodiment of the resistive pressure sensor 10 of the present invention are shown.
- the fabrication process starts with step 610 of forming an optically transparent pressure panel electrode layer 130 from conductive material on support panel facing surface 126 of pressure substrate 120 .
- the pressure panel electrode layer is a pattern of straight rows of conductive pressure layer paths 132 .
- the conductive material may comprise indium-tin-oxide (ITO), indium-zinc-oxide (IZO), indium-tin-zinc-oxide (ITZO), poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS), carbon nanoparticles, carbon nanotubes, graphene, metal nanoparticles, metal nanowires (e.g.
- the conductive material can be applied onto support panel facing surface 126 , by way of example and not limitation, via slot die coating, spray coating, or Meyer rod coating. The conductive material may then be patterned using laser ablation. The conductive material applied will attach itself to support panel facing surface 126 through intermolecular forces. Support panel facing surface 126 of pressure substrate 120 may be specially treated with optically transparent functional groups so that the conductive material will have a strong bond with the support panel facing surface 126 such that movement of applied conductive material on support panel facing surface 126 will be limited during any deformation of pressure panel 100 under an applied pressure.
- step 620 pressure receiving surface 122 of pressure substrate 120 is coated with an optically transparent material to form a protective coating 124 .
- the optically transparent protective coating 124 applied may comprises a transparent crosslinked polymer resin.
- the resin can be polymerized from a mixture of mono and multifunctional acrylic monomers and oligomers.
- the application of the protective coating material can be by slot die coating, gravure coating, Meyer rod coating, or spray coating.
- optically transparent support panel electrode layer 230 is formed on pressure panel facing surface 222 of optically transparent support substrate 220 from a conductive material.
- support electrode 230 is formed in a pattern of straight columns of conductive support layer paths 232 perpendicular in orientation to conductive pressure layer paths 132 , with each conductive support layer path 232 comprising a plurality of conductive lines 234 separated by insulating gaps 236 and joined together at path connector end 235 .
- the conductive material may comprise indium-tin-oxide (ITO), indium-zinc-oxide (IZO), indium-tin-zinc-oxide (ITZO), poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS), carbon nanoparticles, carbon nanotubes, graphene, metal nanoparticles, metal nanowires (e.g. silver nanowire (AgNW)), metal nanogrid, metal mesh, conductive polymer nanoparticles, conductive polymer nanoporous network or the mixture thereof.
- ITO indium-tin-oxide
- IZO indium-zinc-oxide
- ITZO indium-tin-zinc-oxide
- PEDOT:PSS poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate
- carbon nanoparticles carbon nanotubes, graphene, metal nanoparticles, metal nanowires (e.g
- the application of conductive material to pressure panel facing surface 222 may include sputtering, spray coating, screen printing, ink jet printing, laser ablation, stamp printing, photolithography, and so on.
- the conductive material is then patterned, by way of example, using laser ablation.
- support substrate 220 is glass
- a middle layer of optically transparent silicon dioxide (SiO2) can first be formed on pressure panel facing surface 222 to help increase the longevity and quality of bonding between the conductive material and support substrate 220 .
- optically transparent spacers 250 are applied on pressure panel facing surface 222 of the support substrate 220 .
- the spacers 250 may be formed of optically clear adhesive (OCA), optically clear resin, or clear photoresist.
- OCA optically clear adhesive
- the spacers 250 may be deposited via screen printing, photolithography, or ink jet printing.
- optically transparent attachment member 300 is formed along the entire length of outer edge 228 of pressure panel facing surface 222 to create a wall 330 attached at a bottom edge 310 to pressure panel facing surface 222 .
- Attachment member 300 preferably comprises an optically clear adhesive which is screen printed onto pressure panel facing surface 222 .
- Wall 330 of attachment member 300 rises a height 300 h above pressure panel facing surface 222 and forms a perimeter boundary for optically transparent insulating space 340 that is located above the pressure panel facing surface 222 .
- step 660 an optically transparent insulator 350 is deposited into occupy insulating space 340 above pressure panel facing surface 222 , pressure panel electrode layer 230 , and spacers 250 .
- step 670 optically transparent pressure panel 100 is attached along outer edge 128 of support panel facing surface 126 to upper edge 320 of attachment member 300 such that insulating space 340 and insulator 350 are then located between support panel facing surface 126 , wall 330 , and pressure panel facing surface 222 .
- Electrode substrate 500 can help protect optically transparent pressure panel electrode layer 130 during deformation (i.e. flexing) under an applied pressure.
- Electrode substrate 500 may by way of example be formed of silicone, polyurethane, or an acrylic based polymer.
- the pressure electrode 130 is contemplated in a preferred exemplary embodiment to be partially embedded in electrode substrate 500 .
- FIG. 20 the process 700 of fabricating a second embodiment of the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention is shown.
- step 710 of forming an optically transparent pressure panel electrode layer 130 comprising a conductive material (e.g. nanoparticles) on a smooth releasing substrate, which may by way of example and not limitation be glass, PET, or any sheet with a smooth surface.
- a smooth releasing substrate which may by way of example and not limitation be glass, PET, or any sheet with a smooth surface.
- the smooth release substrate surface used may also be treated with a release layer, such as a hydrophobic layer.
- the conductive material may comprise indium-tin-oxide (ITO), indium-zinc-oxide (IZO), indium-tin-zinc-oxide (ITZO), poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS), carbon nanoparticles, carbon nanotubes, graphene, metal nanoparticles, metal nanowires (e.g. silver nanowire (AgNW)), metal nanogrid, metal mesh, conductive polymer nanoparticles, conductive polymer nanoporous network or the mixture thereof.
- the conductive material can be deposited via spray coating, screen printing, ink jet printing, laser ablation, stamp printing, and so on.
- a liquid precursor of electrode substrate 500 is deposited on an exposed top surface of pressure panel electrode layer 130 .
- the liquid precursor may be comprised of a polymer formed from a mixture mono and multifunctional acrylic monomers and oligomers. Due to its liquid state the precursor will occupy any gaps in the conductive material of pressure panel electrode layer 130 .
- step 730 support panel facing surface 126 of pressure substrate 120 is placed onto the liquid precursor.
- step 740 the liquid precursor is cured (e.g. by UV exposure or thermal treatment) to attach electrode substrate 500 to support panel facing surface 126 and pressure panel electrode layer 130 .
- the pressure panel electrode layer 130 is contemplated to be at least partially embedded in the cured electrode substrate 500 : This helps limit the physical movement the conductive material that makes up pressure panel electrode layer 130 during a deformation (i.e. flexing) under an applied pressure.
- the smooth releasing substrate beneath electrode substrate 500 is removed after the electrode substrate 500 has cured.
- step 750 pressure receiving surface 122 of pressure substrate 120 is coated with an optically transparent protective material to form protective coating 124 .
- the optically transparent protective coating 124 applied may comprises a transparent crosslinked polymer resin.
- the resin can be polymerized from a mixture of mono and multifunctional acrylic monomers and oligomers.
- the application of the protective material can be slot die coating, gravure coating, Meyer rod coating, or spray coating.
- the optically transparent support panel electrode layer 230 is formed on pressure panel facing surface 222 of support substrate 220 in a pattern of columns of conductive support layer paths 232 comprised of conductive lines 234 joined together at path connector end 235 .
- the conductive material may comprise indium-tin-oxide (ITO), indium-zinc-oxide (IZO), indium-tin-zinc-oxide (ITZO), poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS), carbon nanoparticles, carbon nanotubes, graphene, metal nanoparticles, metal nanowires (e.g.
- silver nanowire AgNW
- metal nanogrid metal mesh
- conductive polymer nanoparticles conductive polymer nanoporous network or the mixture thereof.
- the formation may be by deposition that could include spray coating, screen printing, ink jet printing, laser ablation, stamp printing, photolithography, and so on.
- optically transparent spacers 250 are formed on top of pressure panel facing surface 222 and/or portions of support panel electrode layer 230 .
- the spacers 250 may be formed of optically clear adhesive (OCA), optically clear resin, or clear photoresist and are deposited via screen printing, photolithography, or ink jet printing.
- optically transparent attachment member 300 is formed along the entire length of outer edge 228 of pressure panel facing surface 222 to create a wall 330 attached at a bottom edge 310 to pressure panel facing surface 222 .
- Attachment member 300 preferably comprises an optically clear adhesive which is screen printed onto pressure panel facing surface 222 .
- Wall 330 of attachment member 300 rises a height 300 h above pressure panel facing surface 222 and forms a perimeter boundary for an optically transparent insulating space 340 that is located above pressure panel facing surface 222 .
- an optically transparent insulator 350 may be deposited into insulating space 340 above pressure panel facing surface 222 , support panel electrode layer 230 , and spacers 250 so as to occupy insulating space 340 .
- step 800 electrode substrate 500 is attached to upper edge 320 of attachment member 300 such that insulating space 340 and insulator 350 are located between electrode substrate 500 , wall 330 , and pressure panel facing surface 222 .
- electrode substrate 500 does not fully cover support panel facing surface 126 upper edge 320 will be attached to support panel facing surface 126 .
- the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention the pressure panel electrode layer and the support panel electrode layer are configured to also act as an X-Y matrix resistive sensing device that, when incorporated into an electronic system having an appropriately programmed resistive touchscreen controller or equivalent drive and processing circuitry, can detect on the touch surface plane of the resistive pressure sensor device the location in two dimensions and magnitude of an applied force.
- the pressure panel electrode layer comprises a plurality of conductive pressure layer paths 132 i and insulating gaps 133 that are arranged along an X-axis, where 132 i designates a specific conductive pressure layer path “i” out of the total set of conductive pressure layer paths.
- 132 i designates a specific conductive pressure layer path “i” out of the total set of conductive pressure layer paths.
- FIG. 30 there are four conductive pressure layer paths 132 1 , 132 2 , 132 3 and 132 4 .
- the support panel electrode layer 230 comprises a plurality of conductive support layer paths 232 j and lines 234 that are arranged along a Y-axis, where 232 j designates a specific conductive support layer path “j” out of the total set of conductive support layer paths.
- 232 j designates a specific conductive support layer path “j” out of the total set of conductive support layer paths.
- each location that a conductive pressure layer path 132 i crosses over a conductive support layer paths 232 j constitutes a pixel region 900 i,j having a unique x-y coordinate value (e.g. (Xi,Yj) in the plane of pressure substrate 120 .
- the plane of pressure substrate 120 is divided into a plurality of pixel regions 900 i,j . If a sufficient force is applied to a pixel region 900 i,j of the pressure substrate 120 , then a closed circuit will be created from a conductive pressure layer path 132 i being moved into electrical contact with a conductive support layer path 232 j to form an active pixel 900 i,j .
- Host 1100 may be, by way of example and not limitation, a handheld electronic device (e.g.
- electronic sensor controller 1000 may be similar to the Microchip AR1100 resistive USB and RS232 touch screen controller, and host 1100 may be a general computing device (e.g. a personal computer, tablet, smart phone) having a CPU processor 1110 and computer-readable storage medium 1120 .
- a computer-readable storage medium is any medium capable of storing data, such as operating instructions, that are readable by an electronic or mechanical device, such as a processor, and includes but is not limited to magnetic media, optical media, and printed media.
- a computer-readable storage medium may be an EEPROM, ROM, flash memory, RAM, a hard disk, or optical disk.
- Electronic sensor controller 1000 is comprised of drive circuitry 1010 , multiplexer 1020 , analog-to-digital (i.e. “A/D”) converter 1030 , signal processing module 1015 , computer-readable storage memory 1080 (e.g. a flash memory), configuration registers 1090 , and communication control module 1070 .
- A/D analog-to-digital
- FIG. 32 in an exemplary signal processing module 1015 there is a decoding module 1040 ; coordinate filtering module 1050 , and calibration correction module 1060 . It is contemplated in a preferred embodiment that host 1100 and electronic sensor controller 1000 would be combined together into the housing of single device such as a handheld electronic device.
- the multiplexer 1020 of electronic sensor controller 1000 to detect the activation of any pixels 900 i,j as a result of physical contact made between the x-axis conductive pressure layer path 132 i and the sampled y-axis conductive support layer path 232 j from a force applied to the pressure receiving surface 122 along the orthogonal z-axis of pressure panel 100 .
- sampled intersection 900 i,j is an active pixel and electronic sensor controller 1100 generates from the output of A/D converter 1030 in accordance with at least one operating instruction (e.g. firmware) stored in a computer-readable storage medium 1080 of the electronic sensor controller 1000 x-y coordinate data representing the x-y coordinate location on the pressure receiving surface 122 for the active pixel 900 i,j and pressure data representing a measure of the force applied to the pressure receiving surface along a z-axis orthogonal to the x-y coordinate plane at active pixel 900 i,j .
- operating instruction e.g. firmware
- the pressure data representing the measure of applied force along the z-axis is determined from the measured amplitude of the detected electrical signal received by multiplexer 1020 from active pixel 900 i,j in accordance with at least one operating instruction stored in a computer-readable storage medium 1080 of the electronic sensor controller 1000 .
- the amplitude of an electrical signal conducted through active pixel 900 i,j will depend upon the electrical resistance of active pixel 900 i,j , which is dependent on the area of physical contact made between conductive pressure layer path 132 i and the discrete conductive lines 234 of conductive support layer path 232 j : This will be dependent on the amount of pressure applied to pressure receiving surface 122 of pressure panel 120 along an orthogonal z-axis at the location of active pixel 900 i,j.
- data representing a two-dimensional location (x,y) on the x-y coordinate plane of pressure substrate 120 where a force is applied is determined in conjunction with a measure of the applied pressure at the x-y coordinate along the orthogonal z-axis.
- a three-dimensional measurement (x,y,z) for a force applied to the resistive pressure sensing device 10 is obtained.
- the x-y coordinate data and pressure data are transmitted in a touch report generated and communicated by electronic sensor controller 1000 to host 1100 .
- Such an exemplary embodiment can be used as an electronic multi-touch system to detect a precise location of a single touch, a multitouch, and different gestures while simultaneously measuring the magnitude of the force applied at distinct points across the pressure receiving surface.
- one or more active pixels 900 i,j are formed for each touch point.
- Each active pixel 900 i,j associated with a location of applied force will conduct a location signal from which the electronic controller 1100 can determine the position (i.e. the x-y coordinate) on the plane of pressure substrate 120 where a force is applied, with the amplitude of the location signal being used to measure the resistance at 900 i,j to determine the amplitude of force (i.e. depth) applied on the touch point along the orthogonal z-axis.
- an electronic system incorporating the resistive pressure sensor device is able to detect different gestures.
- a narrow-tipped stylus may create just a single active pixel, while a broad-tipped human finger may create three to five active pixels 900 that form a round shape.
- a two-finger press gesture may create six to eight active pixels 900 forming an elliptical shape.
- a two-finger pinch gesture will create two groups of active pixels 900 that form two closely patterned round shapes. The two round shapes may be slightly smaller than a finger pressing, but larger than a stylus pressing. Simultaneously, each of the active pixels 900 is able to measure the applied force of each touch event.
- Multi-touch events sensed using a multi-touch system incorporating the pressure sensor invention can be used separately or together to perform singular or multiple actions.
- a first touch event may be used to perform a first action while a second touch event may be used to perform a second action that is different than the first action.
- the actions may for example include moving an object such as a cursor or pointer, scrolling or panning, opening a file or document, making a selection, etc.
- first and second touch events may be used for performing one complex action.
- the complex action may for example include permitting access to a restricted area, logging out the account and exit, loading a user's customized setting, etc.
Abstract
Description
- This application is a continuation-in-part of and claims the benefit of priority to International PCT patent application PCT/US20/032933 filed on May 14, 2020, which is a continuation-in-part of and claims the benefit of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/712,756 that was filed on Dec. 12, 2019, which claims the benefit of U.S. provisional patent application 62/914,827 filed on Oct. 14, 2019, the full contents of each of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
- The present invention is in the field of pressure sensors.
- A touch panel is a type of input device that allows a user to input information through physical contact with a panel device. The touch panel is generally used as the input device for various kinds of products such as appliances, televisions, notebook computers and monitors as well as portable electronic devices such as electronic notebooks, electronic books (e-books), PMPs (Portable Multimedia Players), GPS navigation units, UMPCs (Ultra Mobile PCs), mobile phones, smart phones, Smart watches, tablet PCs (tablet Personal Computers), watch phones, and mobile communication terminals.
- Recent user interface environments have applications that may require accurate information on the amount of pressure applied to a touch screen panel, and the present invention is intended to address this need.
- Another problem found in many touch panel technologies is that they lack the ability to track multiple points of contact simultaneously. The most commonly used technology for a multitouch system is projected capacitive method. However, the projected capacitive method has some significant limitations. For example, it is unable to detect touch input from non-conductive objects such as a plastic stylus and can only detect touch location in two dimensions (i.e. touch points in an x-y plane).
- Recently, some touch panel technologies have also attempted to add the function of sensing the depth of force as this could enable sensing a touch location in three dimensions (i.e. an x-y-z volume). One three-dimensional approach has been to incorporate a resistive force sensing mechanism. However, most resistive force sensors suffer from poor sensitivity of detecting a light force touch. In order to overcome these limitations, hybrid systems incorporating resistive force sensing devices into capacitive touch panels have been proposed. However, these systems are limited because they cannot individually measure multiple forces applied at different locations.
- An alternative means of providing three-dimensional touch location is by adding an additional substrate having a resistive layer above a conventional capacitive sensor. This system however requires additional controller circuitry (and hence cost) that can stimulate and measure the response of the two sensor layers at multiple frequencies. The increased complexity of the circuit design and also reduces the accuracy of the sensor device.
- The present pressure sensor invention addresses these problems by being capable of being incorporated into and used with conventional touch panel electronic systems to more precisely measure the force while also being capable of configuration to simultaneously identify multiple touch locations. In an exemplary preferred embodiment, the touch panel pressure sensor is optically transparent such that it can be applied to visual touch screen devices.
- In the present invention, there is provided an improved resistive pressure sensor device capable of detecting very small discrete pressure changes through measuring a discrete resistance involving two electrode layers, at least one of which is patterned to comprise a plurality of conductive paths that are made up of discrete conductive lines separated by insulating gaps. Discrete changes in resistance may be detected from discrete changes occurring in the contact area between the two electrode layers due to the use of discrete conductive lines in the electrode layers. The resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention is also capable of being configured for use in an electronic system with conventional multi-touch detection hardware and software to detect and process multiple touches and applied pressures that occur at substantially the same time at distinct locations on the touch surface of the pressure sensor. In a preferred exemplary embodiment, the resistive pressure sensor device is optically transparent with optically transparent substrates and electrode layers so as to be combined with a visual display device. However, in other embodiments the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention can be incorporated into other systems or devices where transparency is not required.
- In a preferred optically transparent embodiment, the optically transparent electrode layers comprise a conductive polymer composite formed with conductive nanoparticles that help ensure flexibility, stability and optical transparency. The pressure sensor of the present invention is optically transparent and is thus well suited to being applied to a touch display panel.
- In a first optically transparent embodiment, the optically transparent pressure sensor comprises an optically transparent pressure panel that is joined to an optically transparent support panel. The pressure panel comprises an optically transparent pressure substrate that is coated on a pressure receiving surface with an optically transparent protective coating and has an opposing support panel facing surface that has an optically transparent pressure panel electrode layer. The pressure substrate, protective coating, and pressure panel electrode layer are all substantially transparent to light in the optical wavelengths. The support panel, which is adjacent to and substantially parallel to the pressure panel, comprises an optically transparent support substrate that has a pressure panel facing surface having an optically transparent support panel electrode layer, optically transparent spacers acrylic based polymer, silicone), and an optically transparent attachment member. The support substrate, support panel electrode layer, spacers, and attachment member are all substantially transparent to light in the optical wavelengths. The attachment member is along the outer edge of the support panel and is used to join together the pressure and support panels to form an optically transparent insulating space located between the support panel facing surface of the pressure substrate and the pressure panel facing surface of the support substrate. The insulating space may contain an optically transparent insulator.
- The pressure substrate and support substrate may be comprised of a material such as PET (polyethylene terephthalate) or glass which is substantially transparent to light in the optical wavelengths. The pressure panel electrode layer and support panel electrode layer achieve substantial transparency in the optical wavelengths by being applied in very thin coatings of less than 200 nm and/or being an inherently transparent material (e.g. ITO (indium tin oxide)).
- In a second embodiment, the optically transparent pressure sensor comprises generally an optically transparent pressure panel and an optically transparent support panel as described for the first embodiment. However, the pressure panel further comprises an optically transparent electrode substrate that is located on the support panel facing surface of the pressure substrate and in which the pressure panel electrode layer is partially embedded. The electrode substrate is comprised of an optically transparent material such as an acrylic based polymer.
- As used herein the term “optically transparent” as applied to any object means that light may pass through the object to be perceived by a human eye. Thus, light in the visible portion of the spectrum may pass through the optically transparent pressure sensor of the present invention to be perceived by a human eye.
- In a third embodiment the resistive pressure sensing device is part of a multi-touch x-y-z positional pressure sensor system that comprises the resistive pressure sensing device of either the first or second embodiments and an electronic sensor controller with a connection to a host system. The electronic controller detects a location on a two-dimensional plane (e.g. an x-y plane of a touch panel surface) where a force is being applied and simultaneously measure the amount of force being applied at the location which can be calculated in some embodiments to be representative of a “depth” in a third dimension (e.g. a z-axis of a touch panel).
-
FIG. 1 shows a cross sectional view of a first exemplary embodiment of the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention in an uncompressed state. -
FIG. 2 shows a cross sectional view of a first exemplary embodiment of the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention in a compressed state. -
FIG. 3 shows a front perspective view of the top surface of the optically transparent pressure substrate for a first exemplary embodiment of the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention. -
FIG. 4 shows a rear perspective view of the support panel facing surface of the optically transparent pressure substrate ofFIG. 3 . -
FIG. 5 shows a front perspective view of the pressure panel facing surface of the optically transparent support substrate for a first exemplary embodiment of the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention. -
FIG. 6 shows a front perspective view of a conductive support layer path from the optically transparent support panel electrode layer on the pressure panel facing surface of the support substrate. -
FIG. 7 shows a front side view of a conductive support layer path from the optically transparent support panel electrode layer on the pressure panel facing surface of the support substrate. -
FIG. 8 shows a front perspective view of an optically transparent spacer from the pressure panel facing surface of the support substrate. -
FIG. 9 shows a front perspective view of an optically transparent attachment member of the support panel in relation to its position along the outer edge of the pressure panel facing surface of the support substrate. -
FIG. 10 shows a front perspective view of the attachment member in position along the outer edge of the pressure panel facing surface of the support substrate. -
FIG. 11 shows a front perspective view of the optically transparent pressure panel above the optically transparent support panel with the optically transparent insulating space occupied by an optically transparent insulator prior to the pressure panel being joined to the upper edge of the attachment member. -
FIG. 12 shows a front perspective view of the assembled resistive pressure sensor device once the pressure panel and support panel are joined together and a power source is connected. -
FIG. 13 is a front perspective view of the conductive support layer paths that make up the optically transparent support panel electrode layer. -
FIG. 14 is a top side view of a first exemplary line pattern for a conductive support layer path of the support panel electrode layer. -
FIG. 15 is a top side view of a second exemplary line pattern for a conductive support layer path of the support panel electrode layer. -
FIG. 16 is a top side view of a third exemplary line pattern for a conductive support layer path of the support panel electrode layer. -
FIG. 17 is a top side view of a fourth exemplary line pattern for a conductive support layer path of the support panel electrode layer. -
FIG. 18 is a top side view showing the optically transparent pressure panel electrode layer overlaid on the optically transparent support substrate and showing the optically transparent support panel electrode layer and optically transparent spacers. -
FIG. 19 is a flowchart of the steps for the process of making a first embodiment of the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention. -
FIG. 20 is a flowchart of the steps for the process of making a second embodiment of the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention. -
FIG. 21 is a schematic of the different layered components of a first embodiment of the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention. -
FIG. 22 is a schematic of the different layered components of a second embodiment of the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention. -
FIG. 23 is a schematic of the pressure panel electrode layer composition for a first embodiment of the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention. -
FIG. 24 is a schematic of the optically transparent pressure panel electrode layer composition for a second embodiment of the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention. -
FIG. 25 shows a cross sectional view of a second exemplary embodiment of the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention in an uncompressed state. -
FIG. 26 shows a cross sectional view of a second exemplary embodiment of the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention in a compressed state. -
FIG. 27 shows for a reduction to practice of the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention test data of the measured transmittance as a function of light wavelength from 300-800 nm for the device and that of a glass slide. -
FIG. 28 shows for a reduction to practice of the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention test data of the pressure versus resistance curve of a representative pixel on the device. -
FIG. 29 shows for a reduction to practice of the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention test data of the pressing force versus resistance curve of a representative pixel on the device. -
FIG. 30 shows a top side view of the X-axis conductive pressure layer paths and Y-axis conductive support layer paths of the resistive pressure sensor device invention as configured for an x-y-z axis implementation. -
FIG. 31 shows an electronic schematic of the resistive pressure sensor device invention as configured for an x-y-z axis implementation. -
FIG. 32 shows a block diagram of an electronic system with the resistive pressure sensor device invention configured for an x-y-z axis implementation. -
FIG. 33 shows a block diagram of an electronic system with the resistive pressure sensor device invention configured for an x-y-z axis implementation. -
FIGS. 1-2 show a cross-sectional view of resistivepressure sensor device 10 according to a first preferred embodiment in an uncompressed state (FIG. 1 ) and a compressed state (FIG. 2 ) with a pressure force applied to its pressure receiving surface. Referring toFIG. 12 , the resistivepressure sensor device 10 is comprised generally of an opticallytransparent pressure panel 100 that is joined to an opticallytransparent support panel 200. - Referring to
FIG. 27 data from measurements of the transmittance spectrum of a constructed prototype of the present invention and that of a glass slide in the visible light wavelength region is shown. The transmittance of the prototype of the present invention is as high as 80% across the visible light region. Such high optical transparency is a useful feature for integration with optical devices such as displays. - Referring to
FIGS. 3-4 the opticallytransparent pressure panel 100 comprises an opticallytransparent pressure substrate 120 having apressure receiving surface 122 and an opposing supportpanel facing surface 126.Pressure substrate 120 may, by way of example and not limitation be comprised of glass, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), poly(ethylene 2,6-naphthalate) (PEN), polycarbonate (PC), poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA), polystyrene (PS), polyethersulfone (PES), or polynorbornene (PNB). The material ofpressure substrate 120 is formulated so as to have sufficient elasticity to permit it to bend from a resting position under the force levels anticipated to be applied during use to pressure receiving surface 122 (e.g. the pressure of a human finger pressing down) and then return to its original resting position once the force is no longer being applied topressure receiving surface 122. In a preferred embodimentpressure receiving surface 122 may be coated with an optically transparent coating to form aprotective coating 124. The optically transparentprotective coating 124 applied may comprises a transparent crosslinked polymer resin. The resin can be polymerized from a mixture of mono and multifunctional acrylic monomers and oligomers.Protective coating 124 may be formed of a nanocomposite comprising a high loading of inorganic nanoparticles and a cured polymer resin matrix, a multilayer coating comprising alternating layers of nanometer thick inorganic deposit (such as silicon oxide, silicon nitride, aluminum oxide) and polymer, or thin glass with high hardness. The application of theprotective coating 124 can be slot die coating, gravure coating, Meyer rod coating, and spray coating followed by curing under heating or exposure to UV light. The multilayer stack coating and hard glass may be laminated ontopressure receiving surface 122 during the original manufacture ofpressure substrate 124. Any material used forprotective coating 124 should have an elasticity at least matching that ofpressure substrate 120 so thatprotective coating 124 may bend (i.e. flex) withpressure substrate 120 when a pressure is applied and released. - In the first exemplary embodiment, the optically transparent pressure
panel electrode layer 130 is applied to supportpanel facing surface 126 ofpressure substrate 120. Pressurepanel electrode layer 130 comprises a conductive material that when deposited on supportpanel facing surface 126 will have an elasticity at least matching thatpressure substrate 120 so that it may bend withpressure substrate 120 when a pressure is applied. For example, pressurepanel electrode layer 130 may comprise conductive materials such as indium-tin-oxide (ITO), indium-zinc-oxide (IZO), indium-tin-zinc-oxide (ITZO), poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS), carbon nanoparticles, carbon nanotubes, graphene, metal nanoparticles, metal nanowires (e.g. silver nanowire (AgNW)), metal nanogrid, metal mesh, conductive polymer nanoparticles, conductive polymer nanoporous network or the mixture thereof. Pressurepanel electrode layer 130 can achieve high conductivity as a very thin film. The thickness of the pressure panel electrode layer 30 should be below 200 nm. In this way the transparency of pressurepanel electrode layer 130 can be very high. The application of the pressurepanel electrode layer 130 to supportpanel facing surface 126 may involve slot die coating, spray coating, or Meyer rod coating a very thin layer of the conductive material. - Referring to
FIGS. 4 and 12 in a preferred embodiment optically transparent pressurepanel electrode layer 130 comprises a plurality of substantially parallel and straight conductivepressure layer paths 132 separated by insulatinggaps 133. The pattern of conductivepressure layer paths 132 and insulatinggaps 133 are formed on pressurepanel electrode layer 130 by laser ablation. At an end of each conductivepressure layer path 132 there is a conductive connector 138 (e.g. silver paste or solder) that forms an electrical connection between each conductivepressure layer path 132 and an electrical path 140 (e.g. a conductive wire or trace) to afirst polarity terminal 410 of voltage source 400 (e.g. a direct current source with a voltage of less than ten volts). Note that for clarity of illustration only one of theconductive connectors 138 andelectrical paths 140 are shown in illustration. - Referring to
FIG. 5 optically transparent supportpanel electrode layer 230 is attached to pressure panel facing surface 224 ofsupport substrate 220.Support substrate 220 may be comprised of, by way of example and not limitation, clear glass which should have an elasticity that is less than that ofpressure panel 100 so thatsupport panel 200 does not bend when a pressure force is applied to pressure panel 100: This facilitates the contact area between pressurepanel electrode layer 130 and supportpanel electrode layer 230 varying as a function of the amount of pressure applied. - By way of example and not limitation,
support substrate 220 may be comprised of glass which generally has a Young's modulus of around 7 GPa. Thepressure substrate 120 may by way of example be a flexible plastic film such as PET, PEN, or PC. The Young's modulus of plastic films is smaller than glass (e.g. PET: 2-2.7 GPa), Thepressure substrate 120 can also comprised of glass if it is thinner than the glass of thesupport substrate 220. In such an exemplary case thepressure substrate 120 and thesupport substrate 220 would share the same Young's modulus for glass, but the thickness of the pressure substrate 120 (e.g. 0.1-0.33 mm) would be much smaller than that of the support substrate 220 (1-2 mm) such that the amount of force required to bend thepressure substrate 120 would be far less than that for thesupport substrate 220. Both plastic films and glass with different thicknesses are readily available commercially. - Optically transparent support
panel electrode layer 230 may comprise conductive materials such as indium-tin-oxide (ITO), indium-zinc-oxide (IZO), indium-tin-zinc-oxide (ITZO), poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS), carbon nanoparticles, carbon nanotubes, graphene, metal nanoparticles, metal nanowires (e.g. silver nanowire (AgNW)), metal nanogrid, metal mesh, conductive polymer nanoparticles, conductive polymer nanoporous network or the mixture thereof. - Referring to
FIG. 5 , in a preferred exemplary embodiment, optically transparent supportpanel electrode layer 230 comprises a plurality of adjacent conductivesupport layer paths 232 separated by insulatinggaps 233. In the preferred embodiment conductivesupport layer paths 232 are oriented substantially perpendicular to the conductivepressure layer paths 132. However, the orientation of conductivepressure layer paths 132 and conductivesupport layer paths 232 are not limited in the present invention to being substantially perpendicular but may be varied depending upon the particular application. At an end of each conductivesupport layer path 232 there is a conductive connector 238 (e.g. silver paste or solder) that forms an electrical connection between each conductivesupport layer path 232 and an electrical path 240 (e.g. a conductive wire or trace) to asecond polarity terminal 420 ofvoltage source 400. Note that for clarity of illustration in some figures only one of theconductive connectors 238 and/orelectrical paths 240 may be shown in illustration. - Referring to
FIGS. 5-7 each optically transparent conductivesupport layer path 232 of supportpanel electrode layer 230 comprises one or moreconductive lines 234, with each conductive line having aheight 234 h andwidth 234 w. In a preferred exemplary embodiment, theconductive lines 234 are electrically joined together at apath connector end 235. Eachline 234 is separated from anyadjacent line 234 with an insulatinggap 236, with each insulating gap having a width of 236 w: Referring toFIGS. 13-17 , theconductive lines 234 of a conductivesupport layer path 232 may be patterned, such as by way of example and not limitation, with eachline 234 having thesame width 234 w (FIG. 14 ), or eachline 234 being curved with thesame width 234 w (FIG. 15 ), or eachline 234 being straight but having different widths (FIGS. 16-17 ).Lines 234 may also have avariable width 234 w along their length. Insulatinggaps 236 may also be patterned to have constant orvariable widths 236 w within acolumn 232. - It is contemplated that in an alternative embodiment it would be optically transparent conductive
pressure layer paths 132 of pressurepanel electrode layer 130 which would be comprised of conductive lines and insulating gaps electrically joined together at a path connector end, while the conductivesupport layer paths 232 of supportpanel electrode layer 230 would not have such conductive lines. Accordingly, there are embodiments where it is either the pressurepanel electrode layer 130 or the supportpanel electrode layer 230, but not both, which has at least one conductive layer path with discrete conductive lines and insulating gaps electrically joined together at a path connector end. In other embodiments the pressurepanel electrode layer 130 and the supportpanel electrode layer 230 both have at least one conductive layer path with discrete conductive lines and insulating gaps electrically joined together at a path connector end. - Referring to the embodiment of
FIGS. 5-7 the pattern ofconductive lines 234 of a conductivesupport layer path 232 for supportpanel electrode layer 230 will affect the surface contact area that occurs between pressurepanel electrode layer 130 and supportpanel electrode layer 230 when a pressure is applied to the pressure receiving surface oftouch substrate 120. Generally, the electrical resistance between two electrodes decreases as the area of contact between the electrode surfaces increases. By having theconductive lines 234 of conductivesupport layer paths 232 formed in a particular pattern the contact surface area, and thus resistance, between the pressurepanel electrode layer 130 and supportpanel electrode layer 230 can be controlled to obtain discrete and sensitive resistance measurements for a broad range of pressures applied to the resistive pressure sensor device. - Referring to
FIGS. 5 and 8 one or more opticallytransparent spacers 250 are attached to pressurepanel facing surface 222 ofsupport substrate 220. In a preferred exemplary embodiment, eachspacer 250 may be in the shape of a pillar with adiameter 250 w that is 30-100 μm (the threshold dimension for resolution by an unaided human eye) and aheight 250 h ranging from 50-100 μm. Thespacers 250 may be formed of optically clear adhesive (OCA), optically clear resin, or clear photoresist.Spacers 250 keep the pressurepanel electrode layer 130 and supportpanel electrode layer 230 from being in electrical contact when no pressure is applied topressure substrate 120. The distance between twoadjacent spacers 250 may be equal to or smaller than the distance between two adjacent pixels. The distance between twoadjacent spacers 250 may also vary depending on the elasticity ofpressure panel 100. - Referring to
FIGS. 9-12 opticallytransparent pressure panel 100 and opticallytransparent support panel 200 are joined together through an opticallytransparent attachment member 300 that is located along theouter edge 228 of pressurepanel facing surface 222 ofsupport substrate 220.Attachment member 300 may be comprised of monomers that are first screen printed onsupport substrate 220, and which will be cured onepressure panel 100 is placedattachment member 300. Alternatively,attachment member 300 may be pre-made into an adhesive film which is cut and laminated betweenpressure panel 100 andsupport panel 200. - There is an optically transparent
insulating space 340 that is located between thepressure substrate 120 supportpanel facing surface 126, thesupport substrate 220 pressure panel facing surface 226 and theattachment member 300. In preferred embodiments theattachment member 300 forms a continuous solid perimeter wall that traverses the entire length ofouter edges space 340 is closed. However, in other embodiments there may be one or more openings in theattachment member 300 such that the insulatingspace 340 is not entirely closed. It is contemplated that insulatingspace 340 would be occupied by an opticallytransparent insulator 350 which has electrical insulating properties such that when no force is applied to pressure sensor panel 100 (i.e. in a resting position) there will be no electrical current between pressurepanel electrode layer 130 and supportpanel electrode layer 230.Insulator 350 may, by way of example and not limitation, be an insulating gas or gaseous mixture such as air, or may be a non-volatile liquid such as ethylene glycol, silicone oil, or mineral oil. -
FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate an exemplary pressure sensing event usingresistive pressure sensor 10. With no pressure applied, i.e., while at rest, the pressurepanel electrode layer 130 and supportpanel electrode layer 230 are not in contact and so there is an open circuit with no measurable current flow (i.e. extremely large resistance). When a pressure force is applied to thepressure receiving surface 122, as inFIG. 2 , thepressure substrate 120 will bend (i.e. flex) towards thesupport substrate 220. At a certain minimum level of applied force this will cause a conductivepressure layer path 132 to make contact with aconductive line 234 of a conductivesupport layer path 232 closing the circuit and causing a measurable current to flow between the pressure and support panel electrode layers. When pressure is reduced or removedpressure substrate 120 will return to its unbent (i.e. unflexed) position restoring the insulating space betweenpressure electrode 130 andsupport electrode 230. - Referring to
FIG. 28 it is shown that a difference in the degree of pressure (i.e. force) affects a difference in the area of surface contact between the pressure and support panel electrode layers: Any increase in pressure above the minimum level of applied pressure will cause an increase in the contact area between the conductivepressure layer paths 232 and discreteconductive lines 234 of conductivesupport layer paths 232 which will incrementally decrease the resistance of the circuit and increase the current flow. - More specifically, referring to
FIG. 28 , data from measurements of a prototype of the present invention with pressure applied to the pressure receiving surface up to 10 kPa is shown. Without any applied pressure, a closed circuit is not formed between the pressure and support panel electrode layers. At an applied force of approximately 2 kPa a closed circuit between the electrode layers was created that had a measured resistance of around 700 kΩ. As shown with increased applied force the measured resistance of the closed circuit between the electrode layers decreased with a measured resistance of around 4 kΩ when the applied force was increased to approximately 10 kPa. - Referring to
FIG. 19 the steps of theprocess 600 of fabricating a first preferred embodiment of theresistive pressure sensor 10 of the present invention are shown. - The fabrication process starts with
step 610 of forming an optically transparent pressurepanel electrode layer 130 from conductive material on supportpanel facing surface 126 ofpressure substrate 120. In a preferred embodiment the pressure panel electrode layer is a pattern of straight rows of conductivepressure layer paths 132. The conductive material may comprise indium-tin-oxide (ITO), indium-zinc-oxide (IZO), indium-tin-zinc-oxide (ITZO), poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS), carbon nanoparticles, carbon nanotubes, graphene, metal nanoparticles, metal nanowires (e.g. silver nanowire (AgNW)), metal nanogrid, metal mesh, conductive polymer nanoparticles, conductive polymer nanoporous network or the mixture thereof. The conductive material can be applied onto supportpanel facing surface 126, by way of example and not limitation, via slot die coating, spray coating, or Meyer rod coating. The conductive material may then be patterned using laser ablation. The conductive material applied will attach itself to supportpanel facing surface 126 through intermolecular forces. Supportpanel facing surface 126 ofpressure substrate 120 may be specially treated with optically transparent functional groups so that the conductive material will have a strong bond with the supportpanel facing surface 126 such that movement of applied conductive material on supportpanel facing surface 126 will be limited during any deformation ofpressure panel 100 under an applied pressure. - Next, in
step 620pressure receiving surface 122 ofpressure substrate 120 is coated with an optically transparent material to form aprotective coating 124. The optically transparentprotective coating 124 applied may comprises a transparent crosslinked polymer resin. The resin can be polymerized from a mixture of mono and multifunctional acrylic monomers and oligomers. The application of the protective coating material can be by slot die coating, gravure coating, Meyer rod coating, or spray coating. - Next, in
step 630 optically transparent supportpanel electrode layer 230 is formed on pressurepanel facing surface 222 of opticallytransparent support substrate 220 from a conductive material. In a preferred exemplaryembodiment support electrode 230 is formed in a pattern of straight columns of conductivesupport layer paths 232 perpendicular in orientation to conductivepressure layer paths 132, with each conductivesupport layer path 232 comprising a plurality ofconductive lines 234 separated by insulatinggaps 236 and joined together atpath connector end 235. The conductive material may comprise indium-tin-oxide (ITO), indium-zinc-oxide (IZO), indium-tin-zinc-oxide (ITZO), poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS), carbon nanoparticles, carbon nanotubes, graphene, metal nanoparticles, metal nanowires (e.g. silver nanowire (AgNW)), metal nanogrid, metal mesh, conductive polymer nanoparticles, conductive polymer nanoporous network or the mixture thereof. The application of conductive material to pressurepanel facing surface 222 may include sputtering, spray coating, screen printing, ink jet printing, laser ablation, stamp printing, photolithography, and so on. The conductive material is then patterned, by way of example, using laser ablation. Wheresupport substrate 220 is glass a middle layer of optically transparent silicon dioxide (SiO2) can first be formed on pressurepanel facing surface 222 to help increase the longevity and quality of bonding between the conductive material andsupport substrate 220. - Next, in
step 640 opticallytransparent spacers 250 are applied on pressurepanel facing surface 222 of thesupport substrate 220. Thespacers 250 may be formed of optically clear adhesive (OCA), optically clear resin, or clear photoresist. Thespacers 250 may be deposited via screen printing, photolithography, or ink jet printing. - Next, in
step 650 opticallytransparent attachment member 300 is formed along the entire length ofouter edge 228 of pressurepanel facing surface 222 to create awall 330 attached at abottom edge 310 to pressurepanel facing surface 222.Attachment member 300 preferably comprises an optically clear adhesive which is screen printed onto pressurepanel facing surface 222.Wall 330 ofattachment member 300 rises aheight 300 h above pressurepanel facing surface 222 and forms a perimeter boundary for optically transparentinsulating space 340 that is located above the pressurepanel facing surface 222. - Next, in
step 660 an opticallytransparent insulator 350 is deposited into occupy insulatingspace 340 above pressurepanel facing surface 222, pressurepanel electrode layer 230, andspacers 250. - Next, in
step 670 opticallytransparent pressure panel 100 is attached alongouter edge 128 of supportpanel facing surface 126 toupper edge 320 ofattachment member 300 such that insulatingspace 340 andinsulator 350 are then located between supportpanel facing surface 126,wall 330, and pressurepanel facing surface 222. - Referring to
FIGS. 25-26 a cross-sectional view of theresistive pressure sensor 10 according to a second embodiment is shown. Referring toFIGS. 21-22 , there is an additional opticallytransparent electrode substrate 500 that is on the supportpanel facing surface 126 of opticallytransparent pressure substrate 120.Electrode substrate 500 can help protect optically transparent pressurepanel electrode layer 130 during deformation (i.e. flexing) under an applied pressure.Electrode substrate 500 may by way of example be formed of silicone, polyurethane, or an acrylic based polymer. Referring toFIG. 24 thepressure electrode 130 is contemplated in a preferred exemplary embodiment to be partially embedded inelectrode substrate 500. - Referring to
FIG. 20 theprocess 700 of fabricating a second embodiment of the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention is shown. - The process starts with
step 710 of forming an optically transparent pressurepanel electrode layer 130 comprising a conductive material (e.g. nanoparticles) on a smooth releasing substrate, which may by way of example and not limitation be glass, PET, or any sheet with a smooth surface. The smooth release substrate surface used may also be treated with a release layer, such as a hydrophobic layer. The conductive material may comprise indium-tin-oxide (ITO), indium-zinc-oxide (IZO), indium-tin-zinc-oxide (ITZO), poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS), carbon nanoparticles, carbon nanotubes, graphene, metal nanoparticles, metal nanowires (e.g. silver nanowire (AgNW)), metal nanogrid, metal mesh, conductive polymer nanoparticles, conductive polymer nanoporous network or the mixture thereof. The conductive material can be deposited via spray coating, screen printing, ink jet printing, laser ablation, stamp printing, and so on. - Next, in step 720 a liquid precursor of
electrode substrate 500 is deposited on an exposed top surface of pressurepanel electrode layer 130. The liquid precursor may be comprised of a polymer formed from a mixture mono and multifunctional acrylic monomers and oligomers. Due to its liquid state the precursor will occupy any gaps in the conductive material of pressurepanel electrode layer 130. - Next, in
step 730 supportpanel facing surface 126 ofpressure substrate 120 is placed onto the liquid precursor. Next, instep 740 the liquid precursor is cured (e.g. by UV exposure or thermal treatment) to attachelectrode substrate 500 to supportpanel facing surface 126 and pressurepanel electrode layer 130. Referring toFIG. 24 the pressurepanel electrode layer 130 is contemplated to be at least partially embedded in the cured electrode substrate 500: This helps limit the physical movement the conductive material that makes up pressurepanel electrode layer 130 during a deformation (i.e. flexing) under an applied pressure. The smooth releasing substrate beneathelectrode substrate 500 is removed after theelectrode substrate 500 has cured. - Next, in
step 750pressure receiving surface 122 ofpressure substrate 120 is coated with an optically transparent protective material to formprotective coating 124. The optically transparentprotective coating 124 applied may comprises a transparent crosslinked polymer resin. The resin can be polymerized from a mixture of mono and multifunctional acrylic monomers and oligomers. The application of the protective material can be slot die coating, gravure coating, Meyer rod coating, or spray coating. - Next in
step 760 the optically transparent supportpanel electrode layer 230 is formed on pressurepanel facing surface 222 ofsupport substrate 220 in a pattern of columns of conductivesupport layer paths 232 comprised ofconductive lines 234 joined together atpath connector end 235. The conductive material may comprise indium-tin-oxide (ITO), indium-zinc-oxide (IZO), indium-tin-zinc-oxide (ITZO), poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS), carbon nanoparticles, carbon nanotubes, graphene, metal nanoparticles, metal nanowires (e.g. silver nanowire (AgNW)), metal nanogrid, metal mesh, conductive polymer nanoparticles, conductive polymer nanoporous network or the mixture thereof. The formation may be by deposition that could include spray coating, screen printing, ink jet printing, laser ablation, stamp printing, photolithography, and so on. - Next, in
step 770 opticallytransparent spacers 250 are formed on top of pressurepanel facing surface 222 and/or portions of supportpanel electrode layer 230. Thespacers 250 may be formed of optically clear adhesive (OCA), optically clear resin, or clear photoresist and are deposited via screen printing, photolithography, or ink jet printing. - Next, in
step 780 opticallytransparent attachment member 300 is formed along the entire length ofouter edge 228 of pressurepanel facing surface 222 to create awall 330 attached at abottom edge 310 to pressurepanel facing surface 222.Attachment member 300 preferably comprises an optically clear adhesive which is screen printed onto pressurepanel facing surface 222.Wall 330 ofattachment member 300 rises aheight 300 h above pressurepanel facing surface 222 and forms a perimeter boundary for an optically transparentinsulating space 340 that is located above pressurepanel facing surface 222. - Next, in
step 790 an opticallytransparent insulator 350 may be deposited into insulatingspace 340 above pressurepanel facing surface 222, supportpanel electrode layer 230, andspacers 250 so as to occupy insulatingspace 340. - Next, in
step 800electrode substrate 500 is attached toupper edge 320 ofattachment member 300 such that insulatingspace 340 andinsulator 350 are located betweenelectrode substrate 500,wall 330, and pressurepanel facing surface 222. In some embodiments whereelectrode substrate 500 does not fully cover supportpanel facing surface 126upper edge 320 will be attached to supportpanel facing surface 126. - In a third preferred multi-touch embodiment the resistive pressure sensor device of the present invention the pressure panel electrode layer and the support panel electrode layer are configured to also act as an X-Y matrix resistive sensing device that, when incorporated into an electronic system having an appropriately programmed resistive touchscreen controller or equivalent drive and processing circuitry, can detect on the touch surface plane of the resistive pressure sensor device the location in two dimensions and magnitude of an applied force.
- As illustrated in
FIGS. 30-31 , by way of example and not limitation, in an electronic system incorporatingresistive pressure sensor 10 in an x-y-z sensor configuration the pressure panel electrode layer comprises a plurality of conductive pressure layer paths 132 i and insulatinggaps 133 that are arranged along an X-axis, where 132 i designates a specific conductive pressure layer path “i” out of the total set of conductive pressure layer paths. By way of the illustrated example ofFIG. 30 there are four conductivepressure layer paths panel electrode layer 230 comprises a plurality of conductivesupport layer paths 232 j andlines 234 that are arranged along a Y-axis, where 232 j designates a specific conductive support layer path “j” out of the total set of conductive support layer paths. By way of the illustrated example ofFIG. 30 there are four conductivesupport layer paths FIG. 31 each location that a conductive pressure layer path 132 i crosses over a conductivesupport layer paths 232 j constitutes apixel region 900 i,j having a unique x-y coordinate value (e.g. (Xi,Yj) in the plane ofpressure substrate 120. Accordingly, the plane ofpressure substrate 120 is divided into a plurality ofpixel regions 900 i,j. If a sufficient force is applied to apixel region 900 i,j of thepressure substrate 120, then a closed circuit will be created from a conductive pressure layer path 132 i being moved into electrical contact with a conductivesupport layer path 232 j to form anactive pixel 900 i,j. Referring toFIG. 33 there is shown an embodiment of a system incorporating the resistivepressure sensor device 10 ofFIGS. 30-31 and a connectedelectronic sensor controller 1000 andhost 1100.Host 1100 may be, by way of example and not limitation, a handheld electronic device (e.g. a tablet or smartphone), a laptop computer, a desktop computer, or a computer server. By way of example and not limitationelectronic sensor controller 1000 may be similar to the Microchip AR1100 resistive USB and RS232 touch screen controller, andhost 1100 may be a general computing device (e.g. a personal computer, tablet, smart phone) having aCPU processor 1110 and computer-readable storage medium 1120. A computer-readable storage medium is any medium capable of storing data, such as operating instructions, that are readable by an electronic or mechanical device, such as a processor, and includes but is not limited to magnetic media, optical media, and printed media. By way of example and not limitation a computer-readable storage medium may be an EEPROM, ROM, flash memory, RAM, a hard disk, or optical disk. -
Electronic sensor controller 1000 is comprised ofdrive circuitry 1010,multiplexer 1020, analog-to-digital (i.e. “A/D”)converter 1030,signal processing module 1015, computer-readable storage memory 1080 (e.g. a flash memory), configuration registers 1090, andcommunication control module 1070. Referring toFIG. 32 in an exemplarysignal processing module 1015 there is adecoding module 1040; coordinatefiltering module 1050, andcalibration correction module 1060. It is contemplated in a preferred embodiment that host 1100 andelectronic sensor controller 1000 would be combined together into the housing of single device such as a handheld electronic device. - In operation of the system of
FIG. 33 incorporating the embodiment of resistivepressure sensor device 10 of as shown inFIGS. 30-31 it an electrical signal is applied bydrive circuitry 1010 sequentially to each individual x-axis conductive pressure layer paths 132 i. Each time an electrical signal is applied to a conductive pressure layer path 132 i each y-axis conductivesupport layer path 232 j that is crossing the x-axis conductive pressure layer path 132 i is sampled (i.e. measured) by themultiplexer 1020 ofelectronic sensor controller 1000 to detect the activation of anypixels 900 i,j as a result of physical contact made between the x-axis conductive pressure layer path 132 i and the sampled y-axis conductivesupport layer path 232 j from a force applied to thepressure receiving surface 122 along the orthogonal z-axis ofpressure panel 100. - If an electrical signal is detected from a sampled intersection of
pixel 900 i,j, then sampledintersection 900 i,j is an active pixel andelectronic sensor controller 1100 generates from the output of A/D converter 1030 in accordance with at least one operating instruction (e.g. firmware) stored in a computer-readable storage medium 1080 of theelectronic sensor controller 1000 x-y coordinate data representing the x-y coordinate location on thepressure receiving surface 122 for theactive pixel 900 i,j and pressure data representing a measure of the force applied to the pressure receiving surface along a z-axis orthogonal to the x-y coordinate plane atactive pixel 900 i,j. The pressure data representing the measure of applied force along the z-axis is determined from the measured amplitude of the detected electrical signal received bymultiplexer 1020 fromactive pixel 900 i,j in accordance with at least one operating instruction stored in a computer-readable storage medium 1080 of theelectronic sensor controller 1000. - The amplitude of an electrical signal conducted through
active pixel 900 i,j will depend upon the electrical resistance ofactive pixel 900 i,j, which is dependent on the area of physical contact made between conductive pressure layer path 132 i and the discreteconductive lines 234 of conductivesupport layer path 232 j: This will be dependent on the amount of pressure applied topressure receiving surface 122 ofpressure panel 120 along an orthogonal z-axis at the location ofactive pixel 900 i,j. - Accordingly, data representing a two-dimensional location (x,y) on the x-y coordinate plane of
pressure substrate 120 where a force is applied is determined in conjunction with a measure of the applied pressure at the x-y coordinate along the orthogonal z-axis. Thus, a three-dimensional measurement (x,y,z) for a force applied to the resistivepressure sensing device 10 is obtained. The x-y coordinate data and pressure data are transmitted in a touch report generated and communicated byelectronic sensor controller 1000 tohost 1100. - Such an exemplary embodiment can be used as an electronic multi-touch system to detect a precise location of a single touch, a multitouch, and different gestures while simultaneously measuring the magnitude of the force applied at distinct points across the pressure receiving surface. When plural objects are pressed against the pressure receiving surface of the multi-touch resistive pressure sensor device embodiment, one or more
active pixels 900 i,j are formed for each touch point. Eachactive pixel 900 i,j associated with a location of applied force will conduct a location signal from which theelectronic controller 1100 can determine the position (i.e. the x-y coordinate) on the plane ofpressure substrate 120 where a force is applied, with the amplitude of the location signal being used to measure the resistance at 900 i,j to determine the amplitude of force (i.e. depth) applied on the touch point along the orthogonal z-axis. - By analyzing the number of
active pixels 900 i,j and their distribution, an electronic system incorporating the resistive pressure sensor device is able to detect different gestures. By way of example, a narrow-tipped stylus may create just a single active pixel, while a broad-tipped human finger may create three to five active pixels 900 that form a round shape. A two-finger press gesture may create six to eight active pixels 900 forming an elliptical shape. A two-finger pinch gesture will create two groups of active pixels 900 that form two closely patterned round shapes. The two round shapes may be slightly smaller than a finger pressing, but larger than a stylus pressing. Simultaneously, each of the active pixels 900 is able to measure the applied force of each touch event. - Multi-touch events sensed using a multi-touch system incorporating the pressure sensor invention can be used separately or together to perform singular or multiple actions. When used separately, a first touch event may be used to perform a first action while a second touch event may be used to perform a second action that is different than the first action. The actions may for example include moving an object such as a cursor or pointer, scrolling or panning, opening a file or document, making a selection, etc. When used together, first and second touch events may be used for performing one complex action. The complex action may for example include permitting access to a restricted area, logging out the account and exit, loading a user's customized setting, etc.
- While particular embodiments and applications of the present resistive pressure sensor device and systems using it have been shown and described changes and modifications may be made, and the appended claims are to encompass within their scope all such changes and modifications as are within the true spirit and scope of the invention.
Claims (10)
Priority Applications (1)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
US16/984,459 US20210109615A1 (en) | 2019-10-14 | 2020-08-04 | Resistive pressure sensor device system |
Applications Claiming Priority (4)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
US201962914827P | 2019-10-14 | 2019-10-14 | |
US201916712756A | 2019-12-12 | 2019-12-12 | |
PCT/US2020/032933 WO2020232271A1 (en) | 2019-05-14 | 2020-05-14 | Compositions and methods for targeting multinucleated cells |
US16/984,459 US20210109615A1 (en) | 2019-10-14 | 2020-08-04 | Resistive pressure sensor device system |
Related Parent Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
PCT/US2020/032933 Continuation-In-Part WO2020232271A1 (en) | 2019-05-14 | 2020-05-14 | Compositions and methods for targeting multinucleated cells |
Publications (1)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
US20210109615A1 true US20210109615A1 (en) | 2021-04-15 |
Family
ID=75382845
Family Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
US16/984,459 Abandoned US20210109615A1 (en) | 2019-10-14 | 2020-08-04 | Resistive pressure sensor device system |
Country Status (1)
Country | Link |
---|---|
US (1) | US20210109615A1 (en) |
Cited By (3)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US20220164102A1 (en) * | 2020-03-03 | 2022-05-26 | Sensel, Inc. | System and method for detecting and characterizing touch inputs at a human-computer interface |
US20220391038A1 (en) * | 2021-06-03 | 2022-12-08 | Tpk Touch Systems (Xiamen) Inc. | Circuit design and touch panel |
US11561138B1 (en) * | 2022-06-28 | 2023-01-24 | RET Equipment Inc. | Resistive pressure sensor with improved structure design |
Citations (14)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US20110148806A1 (en) * | 2009-12-18 | 2011-06-23 | Wacom Co., Ltd. | Pointer detection apparatus and pointer detection method |
US20120050208A1 (en) * | 2010-08-30 | 2012-03-01 | Microsoft Corporation | Resistive matrix with optimized input scanning |
US20120086668A1 (en) * | 2009-03-03 | 2012-04-12 | Ching-Yi Wang | Integrated touch control device |
US20120268386A1 (en) * | 2011-04-19 | 2012-10-25 | Karamath James Robert | Touch-screen device including tactile feedback actuator |
US20130333922A1 (en) * | 2011-04-29 | 2013-12-19 | Nissha Printing Co., Ltd. | Spacerless input device |
US20140054172A1 (en) * | 2011-02-10 | 2014-02-27 | Biocule (Scotland) Limited | Two-dimensional gel electrophoresis apparatus and method |
US20150049056A1 (en) * | 2013-08-13 | 2015-02-19 | Samsung Electronics Company, Ltd. | Interaction Sensing |
US20170031476A1 (en) * | 2015-07-29 | 2017-02-02 | Focaltech Electronics, Ltd. | Display module with pressure sensor |
CN109032401A (en) * | 2018-06-30 | 2018-12-18 | 云谷(固安)科技有限公司 | Conductive laminate structure, the preparation method of conductive laminate structure and touch panel |
US20190094024A1 (en) * | 2016-02-29 | 2019-03-28 | The Regents Of The University Of Michigan | Assembly processes for three-dimensional microstructures |
US20190121469A1 (en) * | 2017-10-20 | 2019-04-25 | Vts-Touchsensor Co., Ltd. | Conductive film, touch panel, and display device |
CN109856883A (en) * | 2019-03-20 | 2019-06-07 | 京东方科技集团股份有限公司 | A kind of display panel and its control method, display device |
US20190354239A1 (en) * | 2017-03-06 | 2019-11-21 | Fujifilm Corporation | Touch sensor, touch panel, conductive member for touch panel, and conductive sheet for touch panel |
US20210405785A1 (en) * | 2019-09-17 | 2021-12-30 | Wuhan China Star Optoelectronics Semiconductor Display Technology Co., Ltd. | Resistive touch screen and flexible display device |
-
2020
- 2020-08-04 US US16/984,459 patent/US20210109615A1/en not_active Abandoned
Patent Citations (14)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US20120086668A1 (en) * | 2009-03-03 | 2012-04-12 | Ching-Yi Wang | Integrated touch control device |
US20110148806A1 (en) * | 2009-12-18 | 2011-06-23 | Wacom Co., Ltd. | Pointer detection apparatus and pointer detection method |
US20120050208A1 (en) * | 2010-08-30 | 2012-03-01 | Microsoft Corporation | Resistive matrix with optimized input scanning |
US20140054172A1 (en) * | 2011-02-10 | 2014-02-27 | Biocule (Scotland) Limited | Two-dimensional gel electrophoresis apparatus and method |
US20120268386A1 (en) * | 2011-04-19 | 2012-10-25 | Karamath James Robert | Touch-screen device including tactile feedback actuator |
US20130333922A1 (en) * | 2011-04-29 | 2013-12-19 | Nissha Printing Co., Ltd. | Spacerless input device |
US20150049056A1 (en) * | 2013-08-13 | 2015-02-19 | Samsung Electronics Company, Ltd. | Interaction Sensing |
US20170031476A1 (en) * | 2015-07-29 | 2017-02-02 | Focaltech Electronics, Ltd. | Display module with pressure sensor |
US20190094024A1 (en) * | 2016-02-29 | 2019-03-28 | The Regents Of The University Of Michigan | Assembly processes for three-dimensional microstructures |
US20190354239A1 (en) * | 2017-03-06 | 2019-11-21 | Fujifilm Corporation | Touch sensor, touch panel, conductive member for touch panel, and conductive sheet for touch panel |
US20190121469A1 (en) * | 2017-10-20 | 2019-04-25 | Vts-Touchsensor Co., Ltd. | Conductive film, touch panel, and display device |
CN109032401A (en) * | 2018-06-30 | 2018-12-18 | 云谷(固安)科技有限公司 | Conductive laminate structure, the preparation method of conductive laminate structure and touch panel |
CN109856883A (en) * | 2019-03-20 | 2019-06-07 | 京东方科技集团股份有限公司 | A kind of display panel and its control method, display device |
US20210405785A1 (en) * | 2019-09-17 | 2021-12-30 | Wuhan China Star Optoelectronics Semiconductor Display Technology Co., Ltd. | Resistive touch screen and flexible display device |
Cited By (6)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US20220164102A1 (en) * | 2020-03-03 | 2022-05-26 | Sensel, Inc. | System and method for detecting and characterizing touch inputs at a human-computer interface |
US11592935B2 (en) * | 2020-03-03 | 2023-02-28 | Sensel, Inc. | System and method for detecting and characterizing touch inputs at a human-computer interface |
US20230229258A1 (en) * | 2020-03-03 | 2023-07-20 | Sensel, Inc. | System and method for detecting and characterizing touch inputs at a human-computer interface |
US20220391038A1 (en) * | 2021-06-03 | 2022-12-08 | Tpk Touch Systems (Xiamen) Inc. | Circuit design and touch panel |
US11561138B1 (en) * | 2022-06-28 | 2023-01-24 | RET Equipment Inc. | Resistive pressure sensor with improved structure design |
US20230417610A1 (en) * | 2022-06-28 | 2023-12-28 | RET Equipment Inc. | Resistive pressure sensor with improved structure design |
Similar Documents
Publication | Publication Date | Title |
---|---|---|
US10444891B2 (en) | Touch panel and display device including the same | |
US7538760B2 (en) | Force imaging input device and system | |
JP4929319B2 (en) | Capacitive touch screen or touchpad for fingers or stylus | |
US20210109615A1 (en) | Resistive pressure sensor device system | |
US7348966B2 (en) | Digital resistive-type touch panel | |
US20100315373A1 (en) | Single or multitouch-capable touchscreens or touchpads comprising an array of pressure sensors and the production of such sensors | |
TWI581161B (en) | Capacitive touch module and touch display apparatus thereof | |
US20100078231A1 (en) | Dual-side integrated touch panel structure | |
US20100026654A1 (en) | Coordinate input device | |
US20110273396A1 (en) | Touch screen device | |
US20090140987A1 (en) | Duplex touch panel | |
US20140098030A1 (en) | Touch module | |
US10198123B2 (en) | Mitigating noise in capacitive sensor | |
JP2005530996A (en) | Touch sensor | |
US10521056B2 (en) | Touch screen panel and display device | |
TW200917111A (en) | Resistive type multi-touch control panel and its detection method | |
WO2017087210A1 (en) | Touch screen panel with surface having rough feel | |
US20120249472A1 (en) | Touch screen system and methods of calculating touch point thereof | |
US10613688B2 (en) | Touch substrate, touch panel and touch apparatus having the same, and fabricating method thereof | |
WO2021076192A1 (en) | Optically transparent pressure sensor | |
WO2022143073A1 (en) | Dielectric film layer, preparation method and application | |
WO2017190399A1 (en) | Pressure sensing module, terminal, and image display method and apparatus | |
KR20110123043A (en) | Pressure sensor | |
US20120050212A1 (en) | Touch screen | |
US11379075B1 (en) | Electronic device and touch detection method |
Legal Events
Date | Code | Title | Description |
---|---|---|---|
AS | Assignment |
Owner name: RET EQUIPMENT INC., CALIFORNIA Free format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST;ASSIGNOR:QIU, YU;REEL/FRAME:053736/0539 Effective date: 20200828 Owner name: RET EQUIPMENT INC., CALIFORNIA Free format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST;ASSIGNOR:HU, FRANK;REEL/FRAME:053736/0361 Effective date: 20200828 |
|
AS | Assignment |
Owner name: RET EQUIPMENT INC., CALIFORNIA Free format text: CORRECTIVE ASSIGNMENT TO CORRECT THE APPLICATION NUMBER PCT/US2020/032933 PREVIOUSLY RECORDED AT REEL: 053736 FRAME: 0539. ASSIGNOR(S) HEREBY CONFIRMS THE ASSIGNMENT;ASSIGNOR:QIU, YU, MS;REEL/FRAME:054077/0841 Effective date: 20200828 Owner name: RET EQUIPMENT INC., CALIFORNIA Free format text: CORRECTIVE ASSIGNMENT TO CORRECT THE APPLICATION NUMBER PCT/US2020/032933 PREVIOUSLY RECORDED AT REEL: 053736 FRAME: 0361. ASSIGNOR(S) HEREBY CONFIRMS THE ASSIGNMENT;ASSIGNOR:HU, FRANK, MR.;REEL/FRAME:054077/0380 Effective date: 20200828 |
|
STPP | Information on status: patent application and granting procedure in general |
Free format text: FINAL REJECTION MAILED |
|
STCB | Information on status: application discontinuation |
Free format text: ABANDONED -- FAILURE TO RESPOND TO AN OFFICE ACTION |
|
STPP | Information on status: patent application and granting procedure in general |
Free format text: FINAL REJECTION MAILED |
|
STPP | Information on status: patent application and granting procedure in general |
Free format text: DOCKETED NEW CASE - READY FOR EXAMINATION |
|
STPP | Information on status: patent application and granting procedure in general |
Free format text: NON FINAL ACTION MAILED |
|
STPP | Information on status: patent application and granting procedure in general |
Free format text: RESPONSE TO NON-FINAL OFFICE ACTION ENTERED AND FORWARDED TO EXAMINER |
|
STPP | Information on status: patent application and granting procedure in general |
Free format text: FINAL REJECTION MAILED |
|
STPP | Information on status: patent application and granting procedure in general |
Free format text: DOCKETED NEW CASE - READY FOR EXAMINATION |
|
STPP | Information on status: patent application and granting procedure in general |
Free format text: FINAL REJECTION MAILED |
|
STCB | Information on status: application discontinuation |
Free format text: ABANDONED -- FAILURE TO RESPOND TO AN OFFICE ACTION |